Red Sox sitting pretty after the break

The Red Sox open the second half of the season tonight in Tampa against the Rays, without designated hitter David Ortiz, who has received a 4-game suspension for his role in a fight against the Orioles on July 8.

While the loss of Ortiz for a few games will certainly hurt, the Sox are still in good shape. They currently lead the AL East by a game and a half, despite starting the season with one of the worst stretches in team history. Since losing 10 of their first 12 games, the Sox have been on a tear, with a .679 winning percentage in their last 78 games. And according to SI’s Jon Heyman, they might not be done looking for ways to improve, as Hiroki Kuroda appears to be a target. (via Twitter)

We’ll see what the rest of this season has in store, but it’s looking good so far.

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NFL Lockout Update: The absurd rookie salaries have been fixed a bit, with a new rookie wage scale. The end is near.

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Outrage of the day: ESPN has suspended Bruce Feldman indefinitely, for his participation in a Mike Leach autobiography… despite the fact that he had received permission from ESPN beforehand to help with the book. It looks like ESPN is putting out a statement shortly, so hopefully there will be some resolution, but it’s a shame that it has even gotten to this point.

EDIT: According to a statement from ESPN, Feldman was never suspended. I’m not sure if I believe that, but that’s what they say.

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In case you’re wondering what the best part of my week was, here it is:

They weren’t release in the United States, but I got my hands on a pair. You probably don’t care, but you were warned. There will be some sneaker talk on this blog.

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